Archive for the ‘Porter’ Category

8 Aug

HaandBryggeriet Akevitt Porter

Posted by iamgingerbeard in Haandbryggeriet, Norway, Porter.

Session # 188
HaandBryggeriet | Akevitt Porter
American Porter | Drammen, Norway | 10% ABV

One year ago: Central Waters Peruvian Morning

HaandBryggeriet is a small Norwegian brewery making some very unique beers. Their Norwegian Wood (reviewed here), was very strange in that it tasted like Christmas trees and berries. But it was enjoyable nonetheless. Today I have a beer from the same brewery, but this time they’ve used Akvavit barrels to age their American-style Porter. The color on the beer was very dark brown bordering on jet black. Holding it up to the light highlights a touch of ruby red. The aromas jumped out of the glass with chocolate, musty cave, and a faint touch of woody character from the barrels. The taste didn’t wonder too far from the nose. Up front there was a good amount of bitterness and roasted chocolate character from the malts. A nice coffee bitterness followed, but there was nothing unique about the taste as the barrel-aging would have suggested. At 10%, though, this was a very easy drinking Porter. Not sure I’d go out of my way for another one, but it was certainly a joy to drink. Rating: 85/100

Check out all sessions of The Hopry here.
This beer can be found in these states.
Listening To: Jib Kidder “Do It All the Time”



Let us know your thoughts by rating and commenting on this video.

15 Jun

Founders Porter

Posted by iamgingerbeard in Founders, Porter, United States.

Session # 177
Founders | Porter
American Porter | Grand Rapids, MI | 6.5% ABV

One year ago: Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout

Damnit I love Founders Brewing so much. It’s almost impossible to find a beer of there’s that doesn’t make me happy. Their variations of stouts alone is enough to make the beer geek forget all other breweries. The Kentucky Breakfast Stout (and Canadian variation reviewed here) obviously see the most accolades, but for a beer that you can buy virtually anytime this Porter is sadly overlooked. It came to life in the glass much blacker than your typical Porter with a rich brown-colored head and cave-like aroma. Behind that were roasted malts and deep dark chocolate. The flavor was facilitated by the deep roasted malts and a light hopping which gave this beer just the perfect amount of bitterness. You can’t go wrong with this beer, so go out and buy a six-pack for the fridge ASAFP. Rating: 92/100

Check out all sessions of The Hopry here.
This beer can be found in these states.
Listening To: Dock Boggs “Country Blues”



Let us know your thoughts by rating and commenting on this video.

10 Nov

Maui/Stone Coconut Porter

Posted by iamgingerbeard in Maui, Porter, Stone, United States.

Short # 12 | Maui/Stone/Schmidt | Kona Macadamia Coconut Porter | 8.5% ABV
American Porter | Escondido, California | Rating: 91/100

I’m not sure if it’s fair to describe something as bananas when there is no said descriptor in the brew. But seriously, the Kona Coffee Macadamia Coconut Porter collaboration between Ken Schmidt, Maui Brewing and Stone Brewing is bananas! It’s a nice cool weather beer that keeps on reminding you of everything you miss about summer. The beer poured out dark-as-night with a very nice two inches of soft light brown head – but that isn’t what captivated me about this. When I stuck my nose in the glass, nay, got my nose near the glass I was pummeled with a fresh coconut and a macadamia aroma that faded to a bitter, citric coffee. The flavor up front was all coffee. It had a good layer of coconut to compliment some latent sweetness (I think from the addition of lactose) with a very slight nuttiness. As it warmed, it did take on a lactic sourness, but I don’t think too many of you will have this beer sitting around that long. So if you are stuck in the doldrums of a long, cold winter, pick a sunny day, close your eyes, let the sun warm your face and enjoy a peek back into the summer. That is until you open your eyes and are harshly reminded that there is still a foot of snow on the ground…

Up Next: Hopry Special # 8

Others: Maui CoCoNut Porter, Deschutes Black Butte Porter, Smuttynose Robust Porter

Check out all sessions of The Hopry here.
This beer can be found in these states.
On the iPod: Mew “Comforting Sounds”



Thank you for your continued support. Please rate this review below…

25 Aug

Dark Horse Fore

Posted by iamgingerbeard in Dark Horse, Porter, Smoked, Stout, United States.

Session # 104 | Dark Horse | Fore | 8% ABV
American Smoked Stout | Marshall, MI | Rating: 88/100

It’s becoming fairly evident at this point that Dark Horse stouts generally taste the same. On the surface, they all share the same dark malt characteristic that puts off a damp cave aroma and taste. On one hand, this is a good thing because it gives Dark Horse a signature taste. However, with the number of stouts they produce in this Holiday Stout Series, each one is not distinctive enough to really stand out among the other releases. Today’s beer, the Fore Smoked Stout, pours exactly like the Too Cream Stout we looked at on Monday. On the nose, you get a lot of the same characters you find in the Too, which is dark roasted malts, earthiness, and damp cave. The only difference in the Fore is a fair amount of smokiness coming from the malts. A touch of booziness finishes off the nose. As the first drink hits your tongue you immediately notice that this is a bit more viscous than the Too, which I certainly am thankful for. The smoke is immediately apparent in the mouth, as is a good amount of molasses, chocolate, and burnt caramel. As you dig deeper, though, there’s a bit of tartness that comes from the depths of the beer that makes you think of chocolate covered raisins. Again, not the best stout I’ve had, but we’re definitely moving in the right direction. Of the three that I’ve had thus far, I still prefer the Tres the best. Feel free to go back and watch that one now if you’d like (just click here). See you back here on Friday when we’ll be wrapping up Dark Horse Week with one of their better offerings. Up Next: Dark Horse Special Reserve Black Bier.

Others: Alaskan Smoked Porter, Olfabrikken Porter, Founders Porter

Check out all sessions of The Hopry here.
This beer can be found in these states.
On the iPod: Beach House “Walk in the Park”



Thank you for your continued support. Please tell a friend…

23 Apr

Surly Smoke

Posted by iamgingerbeard in Porter, Smoked, Surly, United States.

All you have to do is mention the word Surly and beer geek’s eyes around the country begin to light up. This fairly small Minnesota-based brewery is known for releasing some of the country’s best craft beers. Furious, Abrasive, Coffee Bender, Four, Darkness, and the list keeps going. Most of these come in cans, too. Anyway, this beer in particular is their Smoked Porter (aptly titled Smoke). It was recently released in a very small number of waxed 750ml bottles. I was lucky enough to be able to get several, and thank God because this is one of the best smoked beers I’ve had. Very few smoked beers can bring the perfect amount of smoke that accentuates the beer moreso than taking it over. Smoke is one of these beers – its balance is the best I’ve had in the smoked category, and certainly the winner of this week’s “Smoked Beer Series.” Don’t take my word for it, though, find one for yourself and smoke up!

Check out all sessions of The Hopry here.
This beer can be found in these states.
On the iPod: Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti “Round and Round”



Brewery: Surly
Beer: Smoke
Style: Porter
Location: Brooklyn Center, Minnesota
ABV: 9.5%
Rating: 95/100

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